Thursday, August 1 Thursday's Around the Horn ESPN.com |
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Blue Jays at Royals Toronto: The Blue Jays didn't make a last-minute trade before the Wednesday trading deadline, although general manager J.P. Ricciardi said "at one point, I thought we were close, but the other club changed their mind at 2 p.m.'' Ricciardi said he was not disappointed not to complete a deal. "I like our club,'' he said. "I like the fact that we have some veteran guys here that protect the young guys in the order.'' ... Jose Cruz Jr. started his 28th game in right field, a position where has become a regular since Raul Mondesi was traded July 1 to the New York Yankees. Cruz played 51 games in left and 20 in center. "I'm getting more comfortable out there,'' Cruz said. ... The Blue Jays were 13-14 in July. Kansas City: The Royals recalled right-hander Runelvys Hernandez from Double-A Wichita to start Thursday's game. They optioned rookie reliever Jeff Austin, their top pick in the 1998 draft, to Triple-A Omaha. "We feel this kid needs to go down and pitch,'' Royals manager Tony Pena said. "That's how he is going to get better.'' The Royals also activated LHP Jeremy Affeldt and optioned RHP Kris Wilson to Wichita after the game. ... 3B Joe Randa, who was in an 0-for-20 slump and hitting just .222 in his past 19 games, was held out of the lineup. Luis Alicea started at third. ... The Royals finished July with a 13-16 record. They have not had a winning month since August 2000. ... The Royals, who have the worst road record (14-39) in the majors, open a seven-game trip Friday to Minnesota and New York, who have the two best home records in the American League.
Orioles at Devil Rays Tampa Bay: Owner Vince Naimoli said the Devil Rays are attempting to bring a future All-Star game to Tropicana Field. As for the franchise, which has been reported among the teams having financial difficulties, Naimoli said the future is not gloomy. He also believes the Devil Rays, who have the major leagues' worst record, are at a turning point. "We finally see the light with the prospects coming,'' Naimoli said. "There are some guys that are pretty close.'' ... LHP Wilson Alvarez (left elbow) threw batting practice and should be activated from the 15-day disabled list next week. In the final season of $35 million, five-year contract, the oft-injured Alvarez will work out of the bullpen. ... RHP Victor Zambrano, who has struggled coming out of the bullpen this season, will start Monday's game against the Chicago White Sox. RHP Luis De Los Santos, who has lost three starts since being brought up from Triple-A Durham, will shift to the bullpen.
Red Sox at Rangers Texas: CF Todd Hollandsworth, acquired in a trade with the Colorado Rockies on Wednesday, batted sixth in Thursday night's lineup. LHP Dennys Reyes, who also came over in the trade with Colorado, requested and was granted an extra day to take care of personal business in Colorado before reporting on Friday. ... Reyes will become the 25th pitcher for the Rangers this season, tying a club high. Texas used 25 pitchers last season and in 1992. ... RF Juan Gonzalez missed his second straight start due to a sore right thumb. ... RHP Dave Burba cleared waivers and became a free agent. Burba was released on Monday.
White Sox at Twins Minnesota: Manager Ron Gardenhire said CF Torii Hunter may play Friday against Kansas City. Gardenhire said he wanted Hunter, who missed his third straight game Thursday, to get in another full day of work for "my peace of mind. I'm trying to protect this kid,'' he said. ... In Wednesday night's 2-1 win, LaTroy Hawkins grabbed an apparently blinded Corey Koskie as he tried to catch an infield pop-up in the ninth inning and threw him out of the way. Doug Mientkiewicz made the catch on the other side of the mound. "I thought he did the right thing,'' Gardenhire said. "It looked like Koskie was going to trip over the mound and take him out. I thought that was pretty good actually. ... I was laughing.'' ... Right-handed reliever Mike Jackson (shoulder) did some light throwing Thursday. "He went out there to play some catch and he feels good. He said he feels funny throwing again, but that's because he hasn't thrown in a few days,'' Gardenhire said. He didn't plan to send Jackson on a rehab assignment.
Yankees at Angels Anaheim: C Bengie Molina, who recovered much faster than expected from a strained left hamstring, was activated from the 15-day disabled list Thursday. INF Jose Nieves was designated for assignment. ... Before committing an error in Wednesday's game against Boston, Scott Spiezio had made only two errors in a span of 214 games at 1B (1,579 chances). ... David Eckstein entered Thursday night's game having been hit by 20 pitches -- one fewer than last season, when he led the majors and broke the major league mark for rookies, set by Frank Robinson with Cincinnati in 1956. ... The 12-inning scoreless streak RHP Brendan Donnelly took into Thursday is the longest this season by an Angels reliever. The Angels' bullpen has not allowed an earned run in its last 22 1/3 innings spanning nine games.
Indians at Mariners Seattle: The Mariners are facing the Indians for the first time since Oct. 15, when they beat them in the fifth game since their 2001 AL division series in Seattle. The Mariners won the series 3-2, winning Game 5 3-1. Five current starters -- Jim Thome, Omar Vizquel, Ellis Burks, Travis Fryman and Einar Diaz -- played in Game 5 for the Indians. "They're totally different,'' Mariners manager Lou Piniella said of the 47-59 Indians. "For the most part, they're a totally different team. They're in a rebuilding mode. They're really a new-look club. We've got to make adjustments as we see them.'' ... The Mariners began August with 60 or more wins (66) for the fourth time in franchise history. They had 60 victories in 1997, 61 in 2000 and 76 in 2001.
Tigers at Athletics Oakland: 3B Eric Chavez was back at DH for a second straight game as he rests his problematic hamstrings. "It's a luxury,'' said A's manager Art Howe. "The kid (Mark Ellis) is playing fine at third and that allows us to keep Eric's bat in the lineup.'' Chavez is likely to return to third on Friday. ... Howe hit into one triple play during his playing career, while with the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1975. "It was in Montreal and the wind was really blowing in. There was no way to hit a home run to left field,'' Howe recalled. "I hit a Texas Leaguer into left-center that was a base hit off the bat. Both runners were going. That wind held the ball up and Tim Foli made an over-the-shoulder catch. I rounded first and saw one runner almost at home and the other at third. I thought 'You've got to be kidding.' It was the easiest triple play ever recorded.'' Howe also hit into a double play the next time up. When he came off the field afterward, coach Don Leppert told him 'Don't worry son, you're getting better.' "I wanted to crawl under the bench,'' said Howe. ... 1B Scott Hatteberg was scratched from the starting lineup. Hatteberg's 21 RBI against the Tigers are second only to Tampa Bay (23). He's a career .313 hitter against Detroit.
NATIONAL LEAGUE San Diego: RHP Trevor Hoffman was one out from tying Rollie Fingers for sixth on the career saves list at 341, but instead blew a save for only the second time in 27 chances this season. ... Bobby M. Jones -- acquired Wednesday from the New York Mets -- pitched one-third of an inning in his Padres debut. He walked Mark Bellhorn and got Bill Mueller to pop out in the eighth. Jones was just happy to get some action. "I haven't pitched in a while, I'm excited to back after it,'' he said.
Rockies at Pirates Pittsburgh: RHP Brian Meadows became the 10th pitcher to start a game for the Pirates. Meadows, whose contract was purchased from Triple-A Nashville, started against the Rockies on Thursday. The team used 12 starters last season. ... CF Adam Hyzdu made his 16th start since being brought up from Nashville on July 2. As long as he's hitting, manager Lloyd McClendon plans to keep him in the lineup, even though he's playing out of position in center. "It would be awfully hard to take him out of the lineup right now,'' McClendon said. Hyzdu took a .379 average into Thursday's game.
Giants at Phillies Philadelphia: The Phillies finished July with a 14-13 record, marking the second consecutive winning month. The team also produced a season-high 133 runs, 235 hits, 51 doubles and 31 homers during the month. ... Last season, the team went 11-15 in July and 14-14 in August. ... Friday's starter Vicente Padilla has a team-high 11 wins. ... With his next save, Jose Mesa will become just the third Phillie to earn back-to-back 30-save seasons, joining Mitch Williams and Ricky Bottalico. ... CF Ricky Ledee hit his second pinch-hit homer of the season -- a three-run shot -- on Wednesday. Ledee started in center field on Thursday. ... CF Doug Glanville is 11 of 12 in stolen base attempts, including a team-high 11 straight.
Astros at Mets New York: RHPs Steve Reed and John Thomson and OF Mark Little joined the team after being acquired in trades a day earlier. Reed arrived at Shea Stadium about 45 minutes before gametime and ran right into GM Steve Phillips. "You're starting tonight,'' Phillips joked. "I brought my 83 mph heater,'' Reed kidded. The sidearming Reed, obtained from San Diego, has always been hard on right-handed hitters, but he's been real tough on lefties this year, too. Lefties are batting only .146 with no extra-base hits against him; last year, lefties hit a whopping .519 with five homers against Reed. Thomson, who came with Little from Colorado, pitched his first career shutout at Shea Stadium on Aug. 6, 1997. "I'd always heard stories about how brutal the fans could be here. When I was warming up in the bullpen for that start, I got a taste of that,'' he said. Walking in from the bullpen after a warmup session Thursday night, he got a different reception. "They were being a little nicer,'' he said. "I got the right colors on.'' Thomson will start Sunday against Arizona -- he's already faced the Diamondbacks four times this season. ... Truth or Dare Dept.: Bullpen catcher Vinnie Valinotti was sporting a bruise on the upper part of his right chest, courtesy of David Weathers' fastball. While getting in extra work in the bullpen during the latter part of Tuesday night's 10-0 win over Houston, Weathers was showing exceptional control. So the reliever said, "Do you trust me?'' and asked whether Valinotti would chance catching a pitch with his eyes closed. Valinotti, wearing a catcher's mask but no chest protector, took the gamble. He put his mitt over the heart of the plate -- and got drilled. Valinotti was OK and Weathers felt awful. "I said, 'Dude, I can't believe you closed your eyes' and he said, 'Dude, I can't believe you threw it,''' Weathers said. Valinotti was able to laugh off the effects of the 90 mph pitch. "It didn't even come close to the glove,'' he said. "That's the last time I'm ever doing that.''
Dodgers at Reds Cincinnati: Ken Griffey Jr. hit the third walk-off homer of his career in the 13th. ... RHP Elmer Dessens left after the fourth inning because of a strained groin. Dessens, the Reds' top starter, will be re-evaluated in two days, when the Reds will know if he has to miss a start. Dessens lowered his ERA to 2.67, second-best in the NL. ... RHP Jimmy Haynes, a .205 hitter, pinch-hit in the 11th and flied out to the warning track in center. He was the first Reds pitcher to pinch-hit since Dennys Reyes last Aug. 20. The Reds used a season-high 20 players in all. ... The game went 4 hours, 38 minutes -- the Reds' longest of the season.
Cardinals at Marlins Florida: Even after reviewing game tape, the Marlins aren't sure if RHP Josh Beckett was tipping his pitches Wednesday against the Cards. Beckett gave up three runs and four hits in the second inning, raising manager Jeff Torborg's suspicions. After giving up three runs and loading the bases with one out in the second, Beckett made a change and retired 10 in a row. "It's just peculiar that he's fine out of the windup, but he gives up five runs out of the stretch,'' pitching coach Brad Arnsberg said. "We'll switch him up and get him down lower. We'll make it a little simpler for him. It's frustrating. If it is something, I'm not seeing it. (hitting coach) Bill Robinson, (outfielder) Tim Raines and (infielder) Mike Mordecai have helped me look at tape. Those guys saw nothing.'' ... RHP Vladimir Nunez has a strained hamstring but Torborg doesn't expect it will cause him to miss any games. ... C Charles Johnson, already sidelined with a sore thumb, also has a sore back. He was expected to return to the lineup Friday but now might not be back until next week, Torborg said.
Brewers at Braves Atlanta: RHP Albie Lopez reinjured his groin on the first pitch he threw in is last appearance Sunday in 7-1 loss to Philadelphia, but said he was "perfect'' after throwing in the bullpen before Thursday night's game. Lopez is 1-4 with a 4.95 ERA in 36 1/3 innings. ... 3B Vinny Castilla was in a 3-for-40 (.075) slump entering Thursday. "I don't care what anybody's doing. He gets big hits,'' said manager Bobby Cox. "He has saved us so many runs this year (defense). He couldn't possibly drive in that many.'' Castilla is hitting .233 overall with nine homers and 47 RBI and has only four errors in the field.
Diamondbacks at Expos Montreal: 1B Andres Galarraga is 10-for-23 (.435) -- including three solo homers -- while hitting safely in each of his last six games. Galarraga is hitting just .087 against Schilling, with four hits in 46 career at-bats. ... RF Vladimir Guerrero is 11-for-38 (.289) overall against the Diamondbacks right-hander, including four doubles, three homers and five RBI. ... C Michael Barrett returned to the lineup after missing six straight starts because of a bruised left forearm. |
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